USI – Glossary Of Terms

Literally ‘bringing to an end’; in this context the campaign to end the slave trade and slavery

Person who supported the movement to end the transatlantic slave trade and slavery

A plantation or estate owner who did not live on and manage the property directly

A policy to increase representation from people in groups believed to have suffered discrimination

State of having much wealth or property

A citizen from the United States of America who is of African descent

A person from the Caribbean of African descent

An alternative spelling of Africa, reflecting how it is spelt in many African languages; it is also used to indicate an Afro-centric viewpoint

A philosophical and theoretical perspective from an African point of view; it challenges Africa’s philosophical, economical and cultural marginalization by the West

To move with rapid or violent action; to excite

Akan people are members of an ethnic group from areas of Ghana and the Ivory Coast, in West Africa, who share a common culture and language

The two continents of north and south America and the surrounding islands

Used to describe a person, an action, or an idea that is against slavery

A person who learns a craft or trade by working for a specialist or master for an agreed period, usually at low wages

The period during which a person is bound (under contract) as an apprentice

A place where historical documents or public records are kept and preserved

An upper class within society which is usually based on birth and is richer and more powerful than all other members

A usually simple object showing human work and representing culture or a stage of development in culture

Asante people are members of an ethnic group from areas of Ghana, in West Africa, who share a common culture and language

In the history of slavery this term refers to the permission given by the Spanish government to other countries to sell people as slaves to the Spanish colonies, between the years 1543 and 1834. In British history, it usually refers to the contract between Spain and Great Britain created in 1713 that dealt with the supply of enslaved Africans for the Spanish territories in the Americas.

A quality or a thing that can be used to an advantage

A process of making or becoming similar to others; to integrate into the majority

The Kingdom of Benin was a widespread empire across Nigeria and present day Benin that flourished from the 14th to the 19th century before it was captured and plundered by the British in 1897

A place to sleep on a ship

A person who will not listen to anyone whose ideas or beliefs are different from his/her own; one who regards or treats members of a group (as a racial group) with hatred or intolerance

Often used in Britain to describe people of African and Caribbean (and sometimes Asian) origin

Used during the 1980s to stress the political unity between African, Caribbean, and South Asian people in Britain. Now mainly used to refer to British descendants of first generation Caribbean migrants, or more broadly to all people of African or Caribbean descent living in Britain

The racist gesture of applying Black makeup on the face of a person who is not Black to represent a Black person

A rapid increase in growth, popularity or prosperity

A campaign where people join together and refuse to deal with a person, organization or country, usually to express disapproval or force an acceptance of terms

A class of goods identified as the product of a single maker; i.e. Coca-Cola

Marked permanently with a hot iron as identifiable property; traditionally used on cattle and livestock as well as on some enslaved people to denote ownership

A system of dependencies, mostly colonies, throughout the world that were under the sovereignty and administration of the British Crown and government over a period of about three hundred years

The state or quality of being cruel or inhumane

African traders appointed to deal with European traders

A folk song or style of singing of West Indian origin having a lively rhythm and words which are usually made up by the singer

The ability to hold or contain

Brazilian fight dance developed by enslaved Africans in Brazil

A good transported in a ship, aeroplane or vehicle

Indigenous people who inhabited the Caribbean islands and parts of the neighbouring mainland

the islands off the east coast of North, Central and South America that were called the West Indies by Columbus

Exaggeration of the actions, parts or features of someone or something usually for comic or satirical effect

initially a festival preceding the Catholic season of Lent (a period of fasting from Ash Wednesday to Easter weekend); now refers to general annual festivities, usually with a procession and extravagant costumes, and often symbolically remembering an event in the past

To do or undertake with great charm or appeal

a populist reform movement of the 1830s-40s, which set out a manifesto called ‘The People’s Charter’ aimed at increasing the rights of the working classes

a form of slavery, introduced by Europeans, in which the enslaved person is treated as a piece of property belonging to his or her owner and has no rights; this status is for life and their children automatically have the same status; chattel derives from the word for cattle

The employment of children under an age determined by law or custom

The protections or privileges of personal power given to people under the law

communities with advanced systems of social development

Separate or distinct part of an article or document

used to describe a group of animals and prisoners or enslaved people chained together in a line commonly used by slavers in the 18th century

To occupy the same place in space or time

relating to or characteristic of a colony or colonies

a process of one country taking over another in order to exploit it

a territory partially or completely controlled by another country (often called the mother country or motherland) and settled by those people

A derogatory term that was used to describe people of or belonging to a racial group having darker skin complexion than others. The term is a Eurocentric one which presupposes a position of ‘Whiteness’ and is no longer acceptable for use today.

to preserve in memory by a celebration or ceremony

A fee paid to an agent to perform a service

an article of trade, especially a raw material or product

short for the House of Commons, the elected chamber of the UK Parliament

A social system in which property and goods are owned in common

recompense, intended to make amends, often with a payment

Against; an opposition argument, person or position

Agreement in form, manner or character

A meaning suggested by a word or expression in addition to its exact meaning

to overcome, defeat or subjugate opposition

The act of making people aware of facts or feelings

A person who buys and uses up goods

Living or occurring at the same time period

The parts of something written or spoken that are near a certain word or group and help explain its meaning

open to dispute or argument

An often long or heated discussion about something which there is a great difference of opinion

punishment by the infliction of physical pain, especially flogging

In another or opposite direction

a person of mixed European and African descent; a language with different European and African influences; Creole culture formed by Africans in the Americas combining beliefs of different ethnic groups and adding in European and Christian ideas: Creole culture has evolved over time and is still important throughout the African Diaspora

an identity based on religious or spiritual beliefs, language, and family values; cultures are inherent their applications can be neither inferior nor superior to each other and are continually evolving for individuals and communities

To lower character of

To represent by a picture or describe in words

To reduce in amount by using up

To force a person (who is not a citizen) to leave the country

Intended to lower the reputation of a person or thing; expressing a low opinion

the spreading out of any group of people, forcibly or voluntarily, away from their homeland across a large area or indeed the world (it was originally used to describe the Jewish dispersal); also refers to the expatriate population as a distinct group

To lessen

to treat unfairly favourably or unfavourably, especially on the basis of race or gender

Clearly marking a person or thing as different from others

Condition of being different

an enslaved person who works in a household rather than in the fields

Commanding, controlling or having great influence over all others

Crushed by a superior power

draft

The use of force or threats

The patterns of change or growth

bacterial infection of the intestine resulting in severe diarrhoea

a trade in enslaved people, mainly from Africa, to the Middle East, North Africa and India; also known as the Oriental slave trade

Edo people are members of an ethnic group from areas of Nigeria, in West Africa who share a common culture and language

Efik people are members of an ethnic group from areas of Nigeria, in West Africa who share a common culture and language

being set free, or granted rights equal to others who already enjoy them (including allowing non-Anglicans to sit in Parliament and have other civic rights); the freeing of enslaved people from slavery

A symbol, design or figure used as an identifying mark

To cause to become part of a system

To leave a country or region to live elsewhere

To bring about force

granting the right to vote

To cut or carve on a surface

name given to European 18th century period/movement characterized by literal rationalism in scientific and philosophical thought

a person devoid of freedom and personal rights, who is the held in servitude and considered the property of another whether by capture, purchase or birth

to make a slave of a person; being held in captivity, servitude

Fairness or justness in dealing between people

traditionally a large area of land, used for agriculture, centred on a large house, owned by one person or family

A product where by a design has been eaten into a hard surface

Following accepted rules of conduct

A member of a minority group who keeps the customs, language or social ideas of the group

Centered or focused on Europe or European peoples, especially in relation to historical or cultural influence

of, or according to, the Christian gospel; often conservative Protestant Christianity

Clear to the sight or mind

To enlarge a fact or a statement beyond what is true

To shut or keep out

A person living in a foreign country, especially one who has renounced his/her own country

Labour in which workers are used unfairly for the owner’s own advantage

Is a system where by communities join together to produce goods for sale that make the community richer and stronger as a whole, ensuring workers’ human rights and the environment are protected over time

Fante people are members of an ethnic group from areas of Ghana, in West Africa who share a common culture and language

now obsolete term for dysentery; inflammation and looseness of the bowels

someone who is not an enslaved person

the state of being at liberty, unrestricted, not restrained

Workers who toiled in the fields collectively all doing the same task at the same time

the planned or ordered killing of a racial or cultural group

Citizens of Earth who share in a collective responsibility for taking care of each other and our common environment

Jail

the name given to an area of the West African coast by early European traders who traded for gold

fighting by independently acting groups for a broadly political cause

an area at the West African coast, sometimes referred to as the Guinea Coast; a gold coin issued in 1663 taking its name from there; worth 21 old shillings (£1.05 in decimal currency)

Country on the northern coast of South America

An island country in the Caribbean, formerly St Dominigue

Hausa people are members of an ethnic group from areas of Nigeria and Niger, in West Africa, who share a common culture and language

system of grades or status ranked above the other

a major island in the Caribbean, containing the two sovereign states of the Dominican Republic and Haiti

from the Greek word meaning 'burnt offering' it is primarily used to refer to the Nazi German extermination of Jewish (and other) people in central Europe during World War II

the third stage in the transatlantic slave trade with ships carrying items grown or made in the Caribbean or the Americas, such as sugar or tobacco, to Europe to sell

uniform, all of the same kind

standards or expectations held to be common to all

A person who works towards achieving human rights

Igbo (or Ibo) people are members of an ethnic group from areas of Nigeria, in West Africa, who share a common culture and language

a person who comes into a country to settle

The act of including or involving as a natural or necessary part even though it is not put clearly into words

a form of contracted servitude or apprenticeship for a fixed period of time, often seven years in return for free passage to a colony, with the promise of land or money at the end

a person who has sold their labour for a set period of time

the state of self government

original inhabitants

rapid development of initially, British industry using machines in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. It caused mass migrations from the countryside into the cities

The quality of being unequal

the state of being brutal, cruel, barbarous, without feeling, indifferent to the suffering of others

Lacking in feeling

The collective failure of an organisation to provide an appropriate and professional service to people because of their colour, culture or ethnic origin. It can be seen or detected in processes, attitudes and behaviour which amount to discrimination through unwitting prejudice, ignorance, thoughtlessness and racist stereotyping which disadvantage minority ethnic people.

A means of guaranteeing protection

rebellion, uprising, open resistance to authority

hard white substance of elephant and other animals’ tusks

a country on the coast of West Africa, officially called Cote d'Ivoire; European traders gave the area the name after the large amounts of ivory found there

A musical tradition which blends African-American musical styles with Western techniques and theories and is American in origin

legislation in many American states from 1880s-1960s which enforced segregation between Black and White people and outlawed mixed race marriages; the term ‘Jim Crow’ may also refer to a Black character played by a White actor in a minstrel show

German-born philosopher, political economist and revolutionary activist, Marx is considered the founder of Communism

White racist organization founded by former confederate soldiers in Tennessee in 1866, initially to prevent freed enslaved people voting and exercising other civil rights; members wore white robes to hide their identity and used terror and intimidation against Black people

An event that marks a turning point

something handed down by a predecessor

Lawful

To try to influence public officials and especially members of a legislative body

written record book of the navigation and other occurrences on board a ship, kept on a daily basis

An identifying symbol or motto

short for the House of Lords, the second chamber of the UK Parliament, originally made up of hereditary members or peers, some Anglican bishops, and senior judges (as the Lords is the court of final appeal in the UK). Today, the peer element is appointed, including some hereditary peers and other ‘life peers’

derived from a Kiswahili word meaning ‘disaster’, or ‘terrible occurrence’. It is used to refer to the enslavement of African people by Europeans. The definition also refers to the subsequent loss of indigenous African cultures, languages and religions

A term coming from slavery used for enslaved or emancipated Black women who looked after the children of their usually White master/employer in America

A list of cargo or passengers, especially on a ship or plane

brass bracelet-shaped objects mainly made in Europe and used as money on the West Coast of Africa to trade for enslaved people

legal process (and related documents) by which enslaved Africans could buy their freedom or be freed by their owner

enslaved Africans who escaped into the Jamaican wilderness to form their own separate communities, from the Spanish word cimarrón meaning wild or untamed

military government, which suspends ordinary law

A person, object or animal which is supposed to bring good luck

named after two surveyors, it was originally the boundary between the English North American colonies of Maryland and Pennsylvania; it came to mark the division between the Southern slave states and the Northern free states in the early 19th century

A large scale movement of people coming together for a shared purpose

Something that keeps alive the memory of a person or event

trader of goods, buying for one price and selling them on for an increased price

Christian group, founded by John Wesley and his brother when they broke away from the Church of England and built the first Methodist chapel in Bristol in 1739

the second stage in the transatlantic slave trade, on which ships carried enslaved Africans from Africa to either the Caribbean islands or the Americas (see also Triangular trade)

to move from one place and settle in another, especially abroad

person sent to educate others about a religious faith

To assemble and make ready for action

exclusive ownership or control in the trade in particular goods or service

A place of scenic, historic or scientific merit set aside for preservation; a structure that honours a person or event

Of or relating to the judgement of right or wrong in human behaviours

Native country; or the colonising country

native country; or the colonizing country

A saying that suggests an object or society’s nature or use

slimy substance secreted from parts of the body

Comes from the Spanish or Portuguese term for ‘young mule’. A mule is a hybrid mix of a horse and a donkey. This term is derogatory in its use to depict people of mixed race or people of dual descent, most often of an enslaved Black female and a White man; mixed race women were often more privileged than the enslaved from Africa but still treated as second-class citizens; the term ‘mulatto’ was commonly used in the 18th century but is now considered derogatory and unacceptable today

a mixture of several cultural groups

term used to describe a woman of African descent throughout the 18th to 20th centuries; the word is considered derogatory and unacceptable today

term used to describe a man of African descent throughout the 18th to 20th centuries; the word is considered derogatory and unacceptable today

term given by Europeans to North and South America and the Caribbean Islands, in contrast to the 'Old World' of Europe, Asia and Africa; when they landed in the Americas Europeans considered them to be new lands, downplaying the status of the indigenous inhabitants

people who do not live in a single place but move, often seasonally, over a wide range for pasture to graze animals

an English term for dissenting Christians other than the Anglicans or Roman Catholics including Baptists, Congregationalists, Methodists, Presbyterians, Quakers, Unitarians and members of the United Reformed Church

domination by others in a harsh or unwanted way

Usual or conventional belief or practice

the first stage in the transatlantic slave trade with ships carrying goods from Europe to trade in Africa for captured Africans

person on a plantation paid a wage to organize the work of the enslaved people; manager

A person who is elected or appointed to parliament

A written or music work in which the style of an author or work is imitated for comic effect

Not active but acted upon

The statement set out by followers of Chartism

To cause to last indefinitely

The act or quality where one continues to do something in spite of oppositions, warnings or pleas

love of mankind; philanthropists habitually display goodwill and make charitable gestures

a medical doctor who is not a surgeon

a simplified language developed as a result of colonialism. As the Caribbean islands were colonized their populations grew to include Europeans, Africans and Indians. The fact that they spoke different languages necessitated a common means of communication

a large area of farmland, or estate, planted with particular crops

the successful settlers who developed plantations in the Caribbean; the name combines their local rank and the status to which they aspired

A declaration of beliefs and goals (usually of a political party)

Strong

a preconceived opinion, usually springing from feeling rather than evidence and balanced judgement

Accepted, practised or happening often or over a wide areas

a privately owned war-ship, or its captain, licensed by one government to raid the shipping of an enemy country

In favour of, a favourable person, action, or position

describes a person, an action, or an idea that is in favour of slavery

Having or showing great knowledge

Making use of or interested in new ideas

A rapid increase or growth

Easily noticeable or distinguished

An offer that leads to helping something build or develop

State of being successful or having financial good fortune

To object strongly

An act or device designed to attract public attention

member of the Religious Society of Friends or Quakers, a radical nonconformist Christian religious group established by George Fox (1624 - 91) with a strong sense of morality and social justice

The way in which people of different racial groups get along in society

a belief that one group of people is inferior, or superior to another because to their race

Extreme; departing sharply from the usual

organized armed resistance against established government or authority

To restore to a previous natural state

To increase the number by enlisting new members

electoral reform, or Reform as it became known, was a movement in the 1800s for increasing the democratization of Parliament and voting rights; social reform was concerned with changing conditions for the better, especially for the poor

A person who seeks shelter or protection from danger or distress in country other than their own

To strengthen by additional assistance, material or support

To give up refuse for resign by public declaration

making amends, compensation; claim to payments to the descendants of the enslaved and to Africa by those who benefited economically from slavery

to return, or be returned, home, to one’s native land

to put down and keep down by force any active general opposition or rebellion

to strive against, or refuse to comply (sometimes secretly) with a decision or an established way of doing things

the third stage in the transatlantic slave trade with ships carrying items grown or made in the Caribbean or the Americas, such as sugar or tobacco, to Europe to sell (see also Triangular trade)

uprising against a ruler; or government, sometimes including going over to a rival power

a major change or fundamental reconstruction, usually of a nation by replacing a ruler or system of government or in ways of thinking

Something to which one has claim

Public violence, disturbance or disorder

To make as an established form of ceremony

An artistic, literary and intellectual movement influenced by the French Revolution. Followers stressed ideas around individual heroism and explored nature in new ways that saw its horror and awe expressed in words and imagery.

London-based trading company with a monopoly on the early trade with Africa

clambering and struggling with competitors for a share, e.g. ‘The Scramble for Africa’

a period during which enslaved people newly arrived from Africa were initiated into the labour regime; new enslaved people were given marginally lesser tasks in the seasoning period as their ability to survive disease was tested

separation of people, especially in the use of public facilities, employment, education, and housing; usually with a denial of political rights for the excluded group

a system in which the serf, or labourer, was not allowed to leave the land that he or she worked on

metal hoops and chains put round the necks, wrists and ankles of (usually male) enslaved people to restrain them

pre-decimalization in 1969, one pound sterling was made up of 20 shillings, each made up of 12 (old) pence; a shilling is the equivalent of 5p today

Someone who is made to serve another; devoid of freedom and personal rights; one who is the property of another whether by capture, purchase or birth.

a settlement on plantations, based on the labour of enslaved Africans

work carried out by the enslaved for the profit of others

people who earn a living from capturing, trading and transporting enslaved people; ships engaged in transporting the enslaved

the institution that kept people as property, and submissive to work under the domination of others.

acute contagious disease caused by a virus, with fever and pustules, and with a high death rate; now eradicated world-wide

small two mast, square-rigged sailing ship, similar to a brig

Powdered tobacco especially for inhaling through the nostrils

A person who believes in socialism, a system based on shared or governmental ownership and administration of the means of production and distribution of good

Unity (as a group) that is based on shared interests and goals

A poem of 14 lines usually rhyming by a fixed scheme

A Caribbean Island

Quality or status gained through growth, development or achievement

Position or rank in relation to others

An object or sign used to display a person’s wealth or position in society

a fixed notion of a group of people, often based on prejudices

A manager of a larger home or estate

A careful plan or method

area south of the Sahara Desert in Africa

of inferior importance or rank, secondary, subservient

the right to vote in political elections

a woman who agitated for the female right to vote

pleading or appealing for something from a point of weakness

doctor who specializes in using tools to operate on the body; also a general term for a naval doctor (since most were surgeons)

a factory or workshop employing workers employed for long hours and under poor conditions

A place where Jewish people come together to worship

A newspaper carrying short and sensational news stories and many photographs

A system where people are given goals to achieve and therefore benefit if they can complete the work quickly

A movement started in the 19th century to encourage people to stop drinking alcohol

People who farm land rented from a landlord

The 1865 alteration to the United States Constitution which abolished slavery

To grow vigorously; to gain wealth and possessions

A form of taxation where a tenth of a person's income or the produce from their land, whether derived from crops or animals, was paid to the church to support the clergy

Sympathy for or acceptance of feelings, habits or beliefs that are different from one’s own

A short printed pamphlet, on religious or political subjects, to distribute to the public

Europeans built forts as trading bases along the West African coast; they temporarily housed enslaved Africans until they were loaded onto ships

The transport and trade in humans for economic gain using force or deception

Across the Atlantic Ocean

A Eurocentric term used to describe the selling of Africans as chattel across the Atlantic Ocean between Europe and the Americas

The institution that kept people as property, and submissive to work under the domination of others; the system of slavery that incorporates the ‘trade’ of enslaved Africans, the culture of enslavement, resistance of the enslaved and abolition

Formally ratified agreement between political groups or states

The name often given to the transatlantic slave trade; describes the three sides to the route the slave ships took from Europe to West Africa, then to the Caribbean and the Americas and finally back to Europe; the routes are known as the Outward Passage, the ‘Middle Passage’, and the Return or Homeward Passage. The term is slightly inaccurate as there were many trade routes used during this period that did not start and end in Europe.

A disease caused by bacterium and usually marked by wasting fever and the formation of cheesy tubercles in the lungs

Failed to make or become similar to others; retaining distinctive differences

A means of escape for thousands of enslaved people from the southern United States to the north and Canada operating from the late 1700s to 1862; it was called the Underground Railroad in 1831, and free Blacks and White abolitionists (’conductors’) offered the enslaved travelling at night food, clothing and safe locations (’stations’)

Act or instance of rising up; rebellion

Founded on truth or fact

A commercial undertaking, dealing with goods or assets in the hope that it will bring profit to those involved

The period of time between 1837 – 1901 when Queen Victoria ruled the British Empire

A mark on a passport that is a sign of approval and permission for a traveller to enter and / or remain in a foreign country

The degree of clearness

Beliefs and practices with a strong emphasis on magic and the spirit world, associated particularly with the island of Haiti, in the Caribbean, and thought to have been brought by enslaved people from Africa

A long sea journey

A state of doing well, especially in regards to happiness, as well being or success

Islands of the Caribbean (so called as Columbus thought he had reached India)

Eli Whitney’s invention in 1793 of an engine that separated the seeds from the cotton plant, and greatly increased cotton cultivation and the demand for enslaved people (especially female) in the US

The right of women to vote in Parliamentary elections; finally extended to all women in Britain in 1928 after a long and bitter campaign

Xenophobia denotes a phobic attitude toward strangers or of the unknown. The term is typically used to describe fear or dislike of foreigners or in general of people different from one's self. For example, racism is sometimes described as a form of xenophobia.

An infectious and often fatal disease, spread by mosquitoes in tropical zones

Wooden bar used to link two things, people or animals together, or to carry a burden

An ethnic group from Nigeria who share a common culture and language

The name of the slave ship which became infamous when, in 1781, had 131 enslaved people were thrown overboard to their death, so that the slave traders could claim the loss against the insurance